Related Article

Abstract

Affinity maturation of IgG antibodies in adaptive immune responses is a well-accepted mechanism to improve effector functions of IgG within 2 weeks to several months of antigen encounter. This concept has been defined mainly for IgG responses against chemically defined haptens. We have evaluated this concept in a viral system and analyzed neutralizing IgG antibody responses against vesicular stomatitis virus (a close relative of rabies virus) with a panel of monoclonal antibodies obtained early (day 6 or 12) and late (day 150) after hyperimmunization. These neutralizing IgG antibodies recognize a single major antigenic site with high affinities (Ka of 10(8)-10(10) liter.mol-1) and with rapid on-rates already on day 6 of a primary response and with no evidence for further antigen dose- and time-dependent overall improvement of affinity. This type of IgG response is probably representative for viruses or bacterial toxins which are crucially controlled by neutralizing antibodies.

Topology could help better connect the people and places in these chaotic communities. But some who’ve studied slums and their multifaceted origins fear that applying such mathematical approaches won’t help, and could even make the problem worse.

A study estimates 107,000 cases of premature death in the United States due to anthropogenic particulate matter PM2.5 in 2011, with a societal cost of $886 billion, highlighting the importance of modeling emissions at fine spatial scales to prioritize emissions mitigation efforts.

A study suggests a potential treatment approach for severe peanut allergies; treatment inhibited more than 80% of the allergic response to crude peanut extract in serum from 14 of 16 patients and reduced basophil activation in whole blood from three patients.

A study quantifies the drivers of public interest in more than 600 bird species in the United States by comparing summaries of online searches for each species to the species’ abundance and spatial distribution.